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Zamfara lawmakers fight back, move to impeach Gov Yari

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Zamfara lawmakers fight back, move to impeach Gov Yari

The Zamfara State Governor, Abdülaziz Yarı, may have bitten more than he can chew, as members of the State House of Assembly have resolved to commence impeachment proceedings against him.

The lawmakers, in a statement issued by the Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Mannir Gidan-Jaja, listed six impeachable offenses against the governor.

It would be recalled that the governor had reportedly ordered the arrest of the Speaker of the House of Assembly, his deputy, the majority leader and chief whip, in an apparent move to forstall any attempt to impeach him.

They were reportedly arrested by the Department of State Services, DSS and detained in Abuja.

The lawmakers, in the statement, accused the governor of misappropriating billions of naira from the state coffers.

Read also: Gov Yari sends Speaker, others to cell for daring to question his governance

The funds allegedly misappropriated by the governor included N11 billion bailout fund, N1 billion agricultural loan released to the state by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN and corrupt abuse of local government funds.

Continuing, the lawmakers accused Governor Yari of failing to remit funds deducted for pensions and gratuities to pension fund administrators as provided by law.

Further more, the governor was accused of ignoring a resolution of the assembly not to appoint Murtala Jangebe as Chairman of the state Universal Basic Education Board, after it had passed a vote of no confidence in Jangebe.

Jangebe was allegedly found to have misappropriated over N1 billion belonging to the board in 2014.

The lawmakers also accused the governor of embarking on frequent foreign trips which have had negative impact on the day-to-day running of government, apart from imposing financial burden on the state.

On the arrest of the Speaker, his Deputy, Majority Whip and supporting staff of the assembly by the DSS, the lawmakers condemned the action of the DSS, describing it as a clear interference in the functions of the legislature as enshrined in the Constitution.

The lawmakers therefore called on President Muhammadu Buhari to caution the DSS against further interference in the matter.

“We are also demanding the unconditional release of our principal officers who are currently under detention with the DSS in Abuja”, the statement said.

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